The Anna-Seiler-Brunnen (Anna Seiler Fountain) is a fountain on Marktgasse in the Old City of Bern, Switzerland. It is a Swiss Cultural Property of National Significance and is part of the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

of the

Old City of Bern The Old City (german: Altstadt) is the medieval city center of Bern, Switzerland. Built on a narrow hill bordered on three sides by the river Aare, its compact layout has remained essentially unchanged since its construction during the twelfth ...

History

The fountain, located at the upper end of ''Marktgasse'' memorializes the founder of the first hospital in Bern. is represented by a woman in a blue dress, pouring water into a small dish. She stands on a pillar brought from the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

town of

Aventicum Aventicum was the largest town and capital of Roman Switzerland (Helvetia or Civitas Helvetiorum). Its remains are beside the modern town of Avenches. The city was probably created ''ex nihilo'' in the early 1st century AD, as the capital of ...

(modern

Avenches Avenches () is a Swiss municipality in the canton of Vaud, located in the district of Broye-Vully. History The roots of Avenches go back to the Celts. A tribe of Helvetians had built a settlement on the hills of Bois de Châtel, south of the ...

). On 29 November 1354 in her willCopy of Anna Seiler's will, translated into modern German
accessed April 25, 2008 she asked the city to help found a hospital in her house which today stands on ''Zeughausgasse''. The hospital initially had 13 beds and 2 attendants and was to be an ''ewiges Spital'' or a perpetual hospital. When Anna died around 1360
accessed April 25, 2008 the hospital was renamed the ''Seilerin Spital''. In 1531 the hospital moved to the empty

Dominican Order The Order of Preachers ( la, Ordo Praedicatorum) abbreviated OP, also known as the Dominicans, is a Catholic mendicant order of Pontifical Right for men founded in Toulouse, France, by the Spanish priest, saint and mystic Dominic of ...

monastery ''St. Michaels Insel'' (St. Michael's Island) and was then known as the ''Inselspital'', which still exists over 650 years after Anna Seiler founded it. The modern ''Inselspital'' has about 6,000 employees and treats about 220,000 individuals per year.Inselspital website-Home Page
accessed April 25, 2008

References

External links

* {{coord, 46.948185, N, 7.444522, E, region:CH-BE_type:landmark, name=Anna-Seiler-Brunnen, display=title Fountains in Bern Fountains, Bern